School Improvement and Governance Network

General introduction

This guide for school councils begins with ten brief practical tips for improving governance in a school. Then, the guide discusses good governance in detail. We wish to thank the many principals, teachers, parents, students, community members and personnel in Victoria's Department of Education and Early Childhood Development (DEECD) and the State Services Authority for their input into this guide.

Top ten practical tips

Ten key areas of good practice are discussed. Each links to the ten features of good governance detailed in the next part. School councils use the ten tips to test how far they live up to all or most of these practices, and to develop practical actions for making any necessary improvements.

1. Focus on the school's purpose

School council members should have a shared understanding of the school's purpose statement, and monitor progress toward achieving the things in the statement. If a school's purpose (using an example from a secondary school) is to "develop a collaborative learning community which supports and extends all students as powerful autonomous lifelong learners", the obvious questions are: what does this really mean in practice, and what are the best ways to monitor the on-going development of this?

What matters is how a school council's plans, policies and partnerships - the '3Ps' - support the development of the school's purpose and, ultimately, help improve the educational experiences and learning outcomes and life opportunities of all students. Ways that schools do this include:

• The principal and council president make sure that the meeting agenda always has a focus on core parts of the school's purpose and the student outcome areas in the school's strategic plan. To do this, they pare back the agenda to highlight the things that really matter, and make sure that the agenda does not distract from the council's governance role of setting and monitoring goals
• The principal's report at each council meeting may include a focus on discussing one of the goals or a part of the purpose statement, and the current work to achieve or improve it
• Council members are invited to suggest an agenda item for the next meeting which will inform the council about an aspect of the school's work or progress toward the school's goals, and provide an opportunity for the council to look at how its work is contributing to the goals.

2. Highlight what a school council does

Make sure that the role, objectives, functions and powers of the council are clearly understood in a detailed, practical way by all council members, and every member has a copy of the documents that specify what a council does. Develop an on-line repository of key documents for ready access. These documents include DEECD's Making the Partnership Work and other guidelines.

Putting aside time at the start of each year to discuss the most important work of a council, a council ensures that all members are 'reading from the same page' and makes it more likely that a council provides direction, leadership and oversight without inappropriate involvement in operational matters.

In relation to the school council objective of enhancing the educational opportunities of students, for example, school councils put aside time to 'drill down' into this objective - to agree as to what it means and how their planning, policy and partnership work may best enhance all students' learning. In looking at how to enhance the opportunities for all students, some schools together with their councils support a school community dialogue about developing a more community-based curriculum.

3. Develop great planning and reporting

It is good practice to have a clear, coherent strategic plan that is owned by the school community and includes at least one shared school-family-community goal such as the better use of learning technologies to personalise learning, and to publicly display the shared vision and goals to the school community in a variety of ways (e.g., via the website and posters on classroom walls).

Make sure that council members are able to participate fully in strategy discussions and updates and upcoming reviews of school plans and policies. Some schools put together a school council calendar that identifies in advance the opportunities throughout the year for council input.

One way to do this is via a school council workplan for the year. A simple Word table may be used with months along the top and focus areas along the side. These areas may include Strategic Plan, Student Progress and Achievement, Finance, Curriculum, Policy, and Council PD.   

The workplan assists with planning for the council's role in monitoring performance. School councils use information to determine progress against the goals by being clear about:

• What the school is seeking to achieve over time
• What information it needs to monitor the progress
• When and how best the information is presented.

4. Promote personal skills and conduct

A skills audit of the members of the council is a useful way of identifying current strengths and any skills gaps. It also raises awareness of the kinds of skills and strengths that an effective council requires. Some councils develop and promote a list of the kinds of personal capabilities that are valued such as the ability to relate to a wide range of people, strategic thinking, challenging the status quo and questioning, active listening, and financial literacy. Induction and training are thus important.

Make sure that council members have a copy of (and have read) the Director's Code of Conduct (as issued by the Victorian Public Sector Standards Commissioner) as well as your school’s code of conduct. Everyone should know precisely what is, and what is not, appropriate behaviour.

5. Have access to all relevant information

Ensure that every council member is provided with all relevant information, including:

• Induction and training - some schools also provide new members with access to a mentor
• Copies of key school council documents such as the standing orders, constituting order, strategic plan, policy manual, minutes of meetings for the past year, annual report, financial report, e-mail addresses and telephone numbers of members and a list of sub-committees
• Guidelines produced by the Department (such as the online school council training package and school policy-writing template) and other organisations (such as the Great Schools Checklist).

The Ultranet school council template provides councils with a documents repository.

6. Plan for dialogue and handling conflict

An effective school council values diversity and draws different views into one voice via:

• A simple set of ground rules for meetings. Some schools print them on a poster that is taped to the wall so they are visible at every meeting
• Organising occasional forums in which teachers, parents and students (perhaps supported by a professional facilitator) explore key questions about school improvement
• Using on-line tools such as Talk & Action to develop an on-going dialogue
• Making sure that members are aware of guidelines, tools and resources for preventing and dealing with conflict and information about grievance procedures
• Acting quickly and positively to deal with any relationship strains or breakdowns, using external facilitation or mediation if need be.

7. Improve meetings and create new teams

A council is obviously only as effective as the quality of its meetings. It is good practice that:

• The standing orders (including ground rules for meetings) are widely understood and adhered to
• The meeting agenda and related papers are sent five working days before a meeting
• Members are invited to submit items for the agenda
• The principal and council president jointly prepare the agenda, and ensure that the agenda is focused on a few things that really matter and thus is not distracting attention from the council's governance role of setting and monitoring strategic goals
• For every agenda item, there should be a recommendation
• Any item that calls for energy and fresh ideas or careful reflection about the school's progress toward its goals is placed near the beginning of the agenda
• Prepare a draft of the minutes within three working days of the meeting.

Minutes are a record of the proceedings and resolutions of a meeting - not a transcript of who-said-what. Less is better, apart from key decisions where sufficient detail should be included to substantiate the reasoning behind the decisions. Keep the school community informed by reporting on each meeting in the school newsletter and on the school website.

A competent, efficient and inspiring chair obviously makes a major difference to the work of a council. If the chair is not performing the role properly, look at what training may be required.

Some school councils have an action sheet in addition to the minutes. A spreadsheet that is routinely updated may include the following headings:

• Meeting date - at which meeting the action arose
• Action - a brief outline of the required action
• Responsibility - who is required to take the action
• Evidence - an agreed method to show that the action has occurred, and the deadline
• Comment - listing the current status of the action.

It is best to leave the action sheet to the end of the council's meeting so that it does not use up precious time at the beginning of the meeting. 

Some councils place a policy focus item on every second meeting agenda - as a key issue (e.g., developing a school's technology plan) to be discussed and agreed on. By alternating procedural and policy-focused meetings, a council is less likely to be a burdensome monthly meeting 'treadmill'.

Be creative with council sub-committees. High-level teams that comprise teachers, parents, students and community members may only meet 3-4 times a year and look at policy issues such as:

• Personalised learning
• Technology and communication
• Health and well-being or health promotion
• Performing arts or sport and recreation
• Student leadership and participation
• A K-12 or 0-18 partnerships team
• Eco-learning/education for sustainability.

Schools find that it can be useful for such teams to be co-chaired by a teacher and a parent. Schools also find that 'less is more' - it's obviously better to have a small number of well-functioning teams than lots of committees. Some schools have rebuilt their leadership structure around a small number of teams, providing a sharp (and shared staff and school community) focus on improvement.

8. Build the very best partnerships mix

Identify and act on any gaps in council and sub-committee membership. Create a council matrix in order to list the skills, diversity and experience of members. A matrix may include categories of expertise and diverse demographics such as socioeconomic status, race/ethnicity, gender and age.

The best school council membership reflects the behaviors your school expects + brings particular skills into the council + reflects the diversity and networks of your community.

It is good practice to develop a school-family-community partnerships policy which becomes a core influence on all decisions, actions and practice. Some schools form a team around this and create a volunteer position for a parent to be a community partnerships coordinator.

Councils also discuss improving the school’s broader community partnerships such as becoming part of a P-12 cluster of primary and secondary schools and strengthening links with community organisations and workplaces. An action plan may be prepared to advance this.

9. Develop a communications plan

A council may develop a policy and plan for further developing content-rich, two-way communication between the school, families and community partners - for example, improving a school's website and newsletter content/lay-out and the distribution of school council information such as reports.

The Department's school communications toolkit provides useful ideas. Some schools also make sure that contact details for council members can be accessed by the school community.

10. Build in reflection and improvement

Ensure that the school council team is 'self-critical' - reflecting on and reviewing practice. Have a simple evaluation sheet at the end of each council meeting - an easy way to gain quick feedback. Some councils have a short agenda item at the end of each meeting when the members can reflect on how the meeting went, what went well and practical suggestions for the next meeting. Things to look at are:

• What worked well in this meeting?
• Did we work well as a team?
• Did everyone participate?
• What didn't work well?
• What do we need to do to improve our meetings?

Conclusion

Some final hints and tips for improving the work of your school council:

• Do not try to do too much too soon – people may burn out
• Do not let the pace slacken too much – people may begin to feel that improvement is too hard
• Look for some small improvements in how your school council works that will be generally welcomed
• Consider how you can assess your improvements – what does a better school council look like?
• Set up a time in the year to review and consider the next steps – celebrate the progress too!

Good governance in more detail

Introduction

The following features which contribute to the effective operation of school councils arise from several sources: the good practices of school councils, research findings, the Department's advice to school councils as well as Victorian public sector governance guidelines.

Decades of research and practice in schools make it clear that:

• Significant improvement in student outcomes can be achieved where parents, teachers, students and community members really work together and continue to learn from each other
• The school-family-community partnership is among the most powerful improvement levers that a school has access to.

The research also suggests that, if these partnerships are to become a source of major improvement in student engagement and achievement, they need to be much stronger.

The foundation for building stronger partnerships is the work, over time, of an effective school council. It is the focus of shared and strategic decision-making for the whole school community. Good governance represents an ideal which is not easy to achieve. As well, because sustained resources and support for school governance have not always been a high priority, few education systems come close to this standard.

Discussions involving many principals and school council members reached general agreement that in order to drive improvement, key indicators of good governance in schools were needed - which could be used to assess the strengths and weaknesses of current practice. Addressing that challenge is the purpose of this guide.

What is good governance?

The Australian National Audit Office defines governance as:

"… the set of responsibilities and practices, policies and procedures, exercised by an agency’s executive, to provide strategic direction, ensure objectives are achieved, manage risks and use resources responsibly and with accountability".

Governance pivots on, but also includes more than the work of, formal governing bodies such as boards or councils. It also encompasses other groups as well as the strength of the partnerships within an organisation, between stakeholders and across its various parts that make up its system of governance.

In the case of a school, besides a school council or board, these groups include the leadership team, staff committees, parent group and student representative council together with the ways that these groups interact with each other and with all stakeholders. This gets to the heart of 'good governance'. A good governing body is based on strong partnerships and broad, grass-roots participation in its own internal work as an effective board and supports the development throughout an organisation of:

• Accountability and conformance, i.e., how an organisation assesses if it performing effectively, efficiently and ethically in the best interests of all stakeholders, and in accordance with the law, regulations, probity, accountability and openness
• Leadership and performance, i.e., how an organisation sets a vision, develops plans, policies and strategies focused on improving outcomes and performance, and helps to build strong and productive partnerships between all of its stakeholders.

Why is good governance important?

The right mix of accountability and conformance and leadership and performance is central to a school's success. Indeed, the development of good governance, as the basis of strong school-family-community partnerships that are broader than but also include the work of teachers, is likely to emerge as the single most important factor in enabling significant improvements in learning outcomes and life opportunities for all students.

For a school council's work, over time, to have a major impact on partnerships and student engagement and achievement, two critical aspects will need to continue to evolve:

1. Good school governance practices (as developed by many schools and informed by research) will need to be embedded across the whole organisation, and the nature and benefits of these practices widely communicated
2. Adequate resources and support will need to be provided to enable high quality training and professional development for council members, and for the building and strengthening of school-family-community partnerships and school networks.

Making time for good governance

Good governance is obviously a demanding and time-consuming endeavour. Time that some may feel they do not have to give, especially in the absence of adequate resources and support. However, many people may make the time to contribute to the work of a school council and its sub-committees if they:

• Believe that their efforts can make a difference to the school and its students' life opportunities and learning outcomes
• Feel that a council is actually governing, not engaging in trivia or failing to embrace diverse views and work as a team.

Greater awareness of specific good governance practices, as developed by many school councils and boards, can promote this commitment. It can also assist a school council, which may have become bogged down in bureaucracy, trivia, micro-management, rubber stamping or petty politics, to move forward.

One way to address some of these issues that school councils can face is to organise every second meeting (of the at least eight that must occur annually) as a more policy-focused forum. This suggestion will be further discussed below.

1. The common interest and core business

The common interest is composed of interests widely shared by members of a community. It would benefit the community as a whole and be supported by most community members, if they can find it. ... The continuing task of governance - in any community that respects equal rights for all - is finding common ground on policies that advance the common interest. Ronald D. Brunner

Good school governance involves two closely related challenges:

1. Finding common ground on policies and plans that serve to advance the needs and interests of all students and benefit the whole community, i.e., advancing the common interest
2. Spending time and energy on the key issues to do with improving the educational experiences and learning outcomes of all students, i.e., focusing on a school's core business.

The best councils translate the common interest into truly shared goals to improve the educational experiences and learning outcomes for all. This is achieved by recognising that:

• A school council is a corporate body; the decisions made by the council are those of a whole team rather than of an individual, a group or committee or any one section of the school community
• All sections of the community - parents, teachers and students - need to contribute views to discussions about a school's core business (high quality education and student learning) and thereby assist the council to come to an informed decision
• Council decisions are made bearing in mind a broadly shared school community vision and strategic plan.

As the practice and understanding of good governance evolves, as diverse views are really valued and as a council strives to build unity in the midst of this diversity, the risk of factionalism, a net cost to the school community as a whole, is reduced.

The role of leadership in facilitating good governance

The principal helps to ensure that the council is focused on its core strategic business and is developing as a real team by:

• Providing the school council with timely and appropriate advice about key educational and other matters (via the principal's report and educational focus items on the meeting agenda)
• Reporting to the school council on the school’s performance against its strategic and annual implementation plans.

Likewise, the school council president does this by:

• Ensuring that the council stays sharply focused on key issues to do with improving the educational experiences and learning outcomes of all students
• Making sure that meetings stay on track - keeping to both the subject (sticking to the agenda) and the time allocated.

A school's core business - exploring key questions

School council members may discuss: 'How do we add real value, over time, to policies and plans to improve learning outcomes?' During a two-year period, some councils hold a forum in which teachers, parents and students, and other community members, collaboratively explore key questions such as:

• What educational challenges are we trying to address?
• What kind of educational context are we working within?
• What can we all do to further improve learning outcomes and reduce the achievement gap?
• What do we need to do to further build school-family-community partnerships focused on shared outcomes?
• What kind of education model are we trying to create (e.g., a cluster of schools developing a coherent, P-12 curriculum)?

As a framework for exploring these kinds of questions to do with a school's core business, school councils, leadership teams, staff committees, parent groups and student representative councils can make use of the Good School Checklist on this website.

2. Clear objectives, functions and powers

The role, objectives, functions and powers of the school council should be clearly understood by all council members. A council’s objectives are to:

• Assist in the efficient governance of the school
• Ensure that its decisions affecting students of the school are made having regard, as a primary consideration, to the best interests of the students
• Enhance the educational opportunities of the students of the school
• Ensure the school and the council comply with any requirements of the Education and Training Reform Act 2006, the Regulations, a Ministerial Order or a direction, guideline or policy issued under this Act.

In relation to enhancing the educational opportunities of students, for example, school councils put aside time to 'drill down' into this objective - to agree as to what it means and how their planning, policy and partnership work may best enhance students' learning.

School councils also ensure that their functions and powers are thought through carefully and are the basis of their practice. Among a school council’s functions are:

• Establishing the broad direction and vision of the school
• Developing, reviewing and updating policies of the school
• Informing itself of, and taking into account, any views of the school community for the purpose of making decisions in regard to the school and its students
• Ensuring that an annual report relating to financial activities and the school plan is published and made available to the school community
• Stimulating interest in the school and the wider community.

A school council's powers include:

• Entering into contracts, agreements or arrangements
• Employing teachers (for a fixed period not exceeding one year or on a casual basis), teacher aides or any other staff for the purpose of performing the council’s functions and duties
• Charging fees to parents for goods, services or other things provided by the school
• Forming sub-committees to assist the council
• Delegating powers, duties or functions, except the power of delegation, to another person or body

Discussion of school council objectives, functions and powers ensures that all council members are 'reading from the same page'. For example, school council members discuss what does it really mean to establish the broad direction and vision of the school and how a vision really connects with practice on a day-to-day basis.

3. Planning, policy making and reporting

The Department's publication for school councils, Making the Partnership Work, explains that:

• A school council is accountable to the Minister in respect of the performance by the council of its functions
• As the governing body, a school council plays an important role in accountability and improvement processes
• This role involves active participation in planning, review and monitoring of school performance
• An effective school has a council that engages in analysis, discussion and debate about performance as a normal part of its business
• A school council endorses the key school planning, evaluation and reporting documents.

A school council should look up at what is possible to achieve over time in the community, not down into daily operations.

Strategic planning

If worked on properly, a school's strategic planning can:

• Separate the important from the urgent
• Develop strategies for realistic, incremental improvement that are also bold in the commitment to real change over time
• Build unity of purpose between the principal, staff and school council and establish priorities around genuinely shared goals.

A school's strategic plan is the basis for teachers, parents and students and community groups working together - a point around which a whole school community can focus and unite. The school's leadership structure may then be aligned with the goals in the school's strategic plan, so that it reflects the priorities of the plan. Some schools seek to do this by organising high-level teams (involving teachers, parents and students) around the goals.

A school council works to consult with the school's community. One way that schools do this is to have a clear time line for developing the plan publicised at the beginning of the year to ensure that council and community members as well as sub-committees have an opportunity to provide serious input. This can culminate in a clear, coherent plan for the future that includes shared school-family-community goals.

Some schools publicly display their shared vision and goals in understandable, explicit terms to their communities in a variety of ways (e.g., on their websites and posters on classroom walls).

Policy making

School council members should seek to focus their time and energy on being strategic and managing the policy development process. A policy is a dynamic answer to a significant problem or issue under consideration by the school. It draws together school community members so that there is a shared understanding and a framework for future action.

Decisions about policies occur after a broadly-based evaluation has taken place, and research has thrown up the creative options available, as well as the pros and cons of each, for consideration. Once a policy is determined, it should be followed by planning for, and careful monitoring of, its implementation.

Good policies developed in this way can be seen to drive a plan for implementation. Policies let everyone know what the whole school community approach is, and what the expectations will be in relation to certain matters. They ensure that there is coordination across all decisions and consistency in how the school operates.

A small number of strategic and specific policies that actually affect school practice is preferred to a large number of policies, some of which may be largely irrelevant or of little use. This approach is based on the notion of strategic gain, i.e., ‘Given our limited resources, what can we do that will help the school to move furthest in the agreed direction?’

A school council may schedule reviews of all the policies for which it is responsible on a regular basis. Parents and students should be informed of the policies to be reviewed each year, the process to be undertaken, how parents and students can be involved, and how they will be notified about any agreed changes at the end of the review process.

This does not rule out the possibility that other unplanned reviews may be necessary if changes occur to the internal or external environment of the school, but such extra demands should be kept to a minimum. The Department has a useful framework for developing policies.

Financial reporting

A school council ensures that:

• An annual budget is prepared and subsequently that regular statements of receipts and expenditure are prepared
• Proper accounts and records of financial operations and the financial position and operation of the council are kept
• An internal control system is maintained and monitored to ensure operational efficiency and adherence to statewide requirements.
  

The financial plan (budget) ensures that the school's resources (people, programs, services and equipment) support the educational goals and priorities. It shows how the school will make the most efficient and effective use of these resources to produce the results aimed for in the strategic plan.

Good financial practice focuses on achieving a close alignment of the budget with the school’s strategic plan and its major goals around improving student outcomes. The Department also has a very useful internal financial control checklist which school councils can use to make sure that they do not expose themselves to financial risk. A school's treasurer and finance committee should be familiar with this checklist.

Annual report

School accountability and reporting are both horizontal and vertical: directed outwards to parents and the local community as well as upwards through a department of education. There should be a balance between horizontal and vertical accountability. To be the basis for in-depth discussion by the school council and the school community and to drive future improvement, an annual report needs to be objective - both celebratory about achievements, and critical of issues not yet resolved.

It should be data-rich, providing information, statistics and explanations of the school’s position in comparison with its previous position, and with that of like schools. It is then a basis for in-depth discussion within a school council.

If a report is simply signed-off with minimal discussion, it is a missed opportunity for carefully reflecting on what has been achieved and should be celebrated, what has not worked and what may need to be questioned and rethought.

4. Personal capabilities and conduct

A council’s effectiveness depends to a large extent on how it develops and utilises the capabilities of its members. A good council will have a mix of people who possess, and who are provided with sustained support and professional learning to further develop, the following capabilities:

• Ability to relate to a wide range of people. Everyone needs to work on their ability to build trusting relationships within and across organisations, work with people of diverse backgrounds (culture, ethnicity, gender, age, social class and educational background) and help develop shared goals
• Strategic thinking. This means envisioning what the school's future can be and how the work of the council can help achieve that vision. Council members seek to understand the ‘big picture’ for the school and its community, inspire others to dream big and continue to develop the ability to think ahead about issues
• Focusing on the things that matter. This involves keeping council meetings focused on the school's goals and always asking: 'Is the meeting agenda, or what we are discussing or doing, helping us to move toward achieving our goals?'
• Challenging the status quo and questioning. Council members challenge the status quo and ask searching questions. They focus on, and discuss the advantages and disadvantages of, a proposed policy or action. They also seek to obtain different types and sources of information, evidence and data
• Listening so that others will talk and talking so that others will listen. Both are obviously always a 'work in progress'. Sometimes people can be so busy trying to push their own ideas that they do not really listen to what others are saying. Council members should strive to have an open mind in all discussions and a willingness to listen to, and learn from, sometimes intensely different viewpoints. This also means encouraging others to voice their opinions
• Financial literacy. Council members should be able to claim that: 'I know and understand the formal financial responsibilities of our council' and 'I understand and carefully consider the financial reports provided at monthly meetings'
• Personal and community signature strengths. Each council member brings his or her unique knowledge, skills and experience to the council. These personal strengths also reflect the strengths of a particular school community (e.g., the social, cultural and linguistic diversity of a school community that may drive and inform a school's socially inclusive curriculum).

There is no reason to expect that all school council members will inherently possess all of the capabilities or value all of them. Thus, induction and training become all the more important, highlighting the need for adequate resources and support being available for the induction and ongoing professional learning of council members.

Succession planning

School councils emphasise the importance of having a longer-term perspective on the personal capabilities that need to be developed and supported to ensure that a council preserves its capacity for good governance and does not lose its corporate memory.

Councils use succession planning as a process for reflecting on their future needs, taking into account both internal factors that they can control (e.g., how they can best promote grass-roots participation in the work of the council) and external factors (e.g., the changing demographics in the school community).

Effective succession planning goes beyond replacements for school council positions. It involves a school council discussion about what capabilities are required for the council as a whole and how these capabilities may be best developed for the future.

Succession planning for specific positions such as school council president and treasurer (as well as school council sub-committee convenors) is also important. This planning involves:

• A council putting aside time for a discussion about which of its members are potential successors to the president or treasurer
• Recognition of the gaps between council members’ current capabilities and the capabilities that may be required to credibly step up to the role of president or treasurer
• Opportunities for professional growth so that a new president or treasurer is prepared for the role including through providing experiences to those that can move into key roles such as a vice-president being asked to chair some council meetings.

Code of conduct

An effective council promotes broad agreement about values (as reflected, for example, in a shared code of conduct) and demonstrates these values through standards of behaviour. School councils should ensure that all members have a copy of (and have read) the Director's Code of Conduct (as issued by the Victorian Public Sector Standards Commissioner). A director and member of a board of a Victorian public entity, including a school council, must:

• Act with honesty and integrity, e.g., by being open and transparent in one's dealings, using power responsibly and not placing oneself in a position of conflict of interest
• Act in good faith in the best interests of the public entity
• Act fairly and impartially, i.e., avoiding bias, discrimination, caprice or self-interest and demonstrating respect for others by acting in a professional and courteous manner
• Use information and their position appropriately
• Act in a financially responsible manner, i.e., understanding financial reports, audit reports and other financial material that comes before the board and actively inquiring into this material
• Exercise due care, diligence and skill, e.g., seeking all relevant information, making reasonable enquiries and understanding the financial, strategic and other implications of decisions
• Comply with the establishing legislation or its equivalent
• Demonstrate leadership and stewardship, i.e., promoting and supporting the application of the Victorian public sector values and acting in accordance with the Directors’ Code.

5. Induction and professional learning

It is important to build the capacity, over time, of the school council to be effective through:

• Proper induction and opportunities for ongoing professional learning
• Sharing ideas and practices with other councils through regional networks of councils and contact with DEECD and stakeholder organisations such as VICCSO.

A council should ensure that all new members are given adequate support, documentation, mentoring, respect and feedback. A council induction package may include all or most of the following:

• Vision statement
• Constituting Order, or a copy of the model Order located on the Department's website plus the council's membership schedule
• Standing orders
• Strategic plan
• Policy manual
• Minutes of meetings for the past year
• Annual report
• Financial report
• Current year budget
• E-mail addresses and telephone numbers of members
• A list of sub-committees (including their terms of reference, chairs and members)
• School brochures
• DEECD's Making the Partnership Work
• The State Services Authority Director's Code of Conduct
• A copy of VICCSO's What is Good Governance?

A mentor may be available to answer questions a new council member has outside of council meetings and act as a sounding board for ideas or issues the new member may want to test before raising them in a full meeting. In this way, stakeholders (including parents and students of diverse backgrounds) are well-equipped to play their part in shared decision making as enfranchised and informed participants.

Professional learning

One-off training workshops can provide a useful introduction to the general roles and responsibilities of school councils. However, if the quality of governance practices in all schools is to be continually improved, there must be an investment in ongoing forms of professional learning for school council members, including the capacity to undertake in-depth analysis of the specific issues and challenges in a particular school, network or region.

Effective professional learning for school councils is:

• Focused on how a council can impact on student achievement
• Embedded in the development of good governance practices
• A source of challenging ideas about key educational issues
• Responsive to the specific circumstances of the school
• Sustained over a period of time, including via on-line learning.

It also recognises the voluntary nature of school councils (except for the principal), and the wide variety of life circumstances, experiences and areas of expertise of council members.

6. Conversations and consensus building

A key role of a school council is to facilitate school community conversations about current educational policies and frameworks and how all stakeholders can work together to improve students' educational experiences and learning outcomes. Such conversations involving stakeholders enable mutual learning and complement the professional knowledge, skills, experience and leadership of the principal and teachers.

Not developing an in-depth dialogue is a common reason for why school improvement efforts can fail. Many principals and school council members suggest that school community conversations can lead to unforeseen innovations and improvements.

Schools that organise workshops and forums in which teachers, parents and students are involved in exploring key questions together benefit from the many ideas and insights which a leadership team, education sub-committee and school council can build into a shared framework for learning. These interactions are referred to as 'powerful' conversations.

Powerful conversations can open up new possibilities for practice by helping a school and its community to:

• Build trust and respect in the face of different views
• Listen deeply to understand what others really care about
• Address tough dilemmas and competing priorities
• Think strategically while operating practically
• Develop a shared framework and goals for learning.

Good facilitation is the key to a successful school community conversation. Schools often use an experienced, independent facilitator who can promote genuine dialogue and consensus.

The challenge is to optimise the opportunity for everyone to express their opinions, and to draw the variety of views into one voice, respectful of dissent, without creating a fake consensus at the lowest level.

A tangible result of a school community conversation may be the development of a shared, school community-wide understanding and policy framework for 21st century learning.

In this regard, in partnership with schools and DEECD, VICCSO has created practical, state-of-the-art tools to support face-to-face and on-line conversations in school communities.

The tools can assist schools with developing shared views about 21st century education, tackling hot topics and promoting respectful dialogue among teachers, parents and students.

Ground rules for conversations

In addition to their formal standing orders, many schools develop ground rules for productive meetings and powerful conversations. Ground rules can be of tremendous importance - and yet are often overlooked as a tool. Devoting an hour to working on ground rules can save countless hours in the future. It is also important to refer to them regularly. Some schools print them on a poster that is taped to the wall so they are visible at every meeting. Ground rules can be added to standing orders.

The following rules are drawn from the ground rules used by several schools. They are relevant to any small group, committee or school council meeting as well as larger community forums.

Sample ground rules

We encourage:

• Everyone to propose matters to be placed on the agenda that is distributed prior to the meeting
• Everyone to express their views at the meeting
• Listening carefully and to understanding each other’s views
• Using body language to show warmth and acceptance and to encourage others to relax and respond in kind
• Questioning
• Mutual learning
• Thinking about what’s best for the community as a whole, not just any one part of it.

We understand that:

• Disagreement and robust debate are opportunities to learn more about an issue and to, ultimately, make a wiser group decision.

We avoid:

• Talking over the top of people
• Not saying anything (i.e., the problem of conflict avoidance)
• Being aggressive or rude
• Taking ‘cheap shots’
• Factions, stacking meetings, hidden agendas and undermining others
• Rubber stamping
• Non-collaborative body language (e.g., people rolling their eyes when another person is speaking).

We use:

• Non-threatening ways to enforce these rules such as the whole group playing a light-hearted role in addressing violations.

Building consensus and resolving conflict

Differences of opinion are inevitable. They can play a positive role by helping to deepen everyone’s understanding of the issues, and to develop more creative solutions. Left unaddressed, however, they can ruin working relationships and divert attention from really important matters and advancing the common interest.

When council or committee members cannot reach agreement on an issue, the chairperson may encourage members to delay the decision to allow further consideration. On occasions, with major issues, a facilitator may be called in to assist the group to reach a position everyone can accept.

If a serious conflict does emerge, two common approaches are to either ‘slug it out’ or to seek to avoid the problem altogether. It is best to seek an alternative to these 'fight' or 'flight' approaches, as both tend to backfire.

A better alternative is conflict resolution, which helps people deal with their differences in ways that are not adversarial or confrontational. It focuses on encouraging both sides to deeply understand what the 'other side’ is trying to achieve, and what they may be trying to protect.

Participants may then look for ways to incorporate these understandings into a solution that all can accept as a way to go forward in the best interests of all. If this process fails, the conflict may require third-party mediation. The Department has useful guidelines, tools and resources for preventing and dealing with conflict.

7. Effective and policy-focused meetings

To arrive at the best decisions, a council will require high-quality information and advice from well-functioning sub-committees together with meeting procedures that are fair and effective. 

Proper meeting procedures make sure that council meetings are run in a productive and efficient manner (no longer than 2.5 hours). The rules for meetings are usually written down and called standing orders (see the Department's sample standing orders). A council develops its standing orders according to its school values and shared understanding of good governance.

Explaining standing orders is an essential part of the induction process for new council members. Every council member should have a copy in a folder that also includes minutes and other documents.

The carefully prepared agenda (the list of matters the council will be asked to consider) and related papers should be sent at least five working days before a meeting. This ensures that everyone has a chance to think about issues before the meeting and to know the deadline if they wish to submit an item for the agenda. The Department has a useful agenda and minutes template to help structure meetings and minute taking.

Policy-focused meetings

The council-approved policy to which each agenda item relates can be identified on the agenda. This assists a council to stay focused on its more strategic role and to monitor how agreed council policies are, in fact, influencing school decisions, action and practice.

Another way to do this is to have a major policy focus item on every second meeting agenda - as a key issue (e.g., developing a school's technology plan or a P-12 cluster model of education) to be discussed and agreed on, ideally following previous in-depth consideration by the relevant sub-committee.

In the course of a year, there may be three or so such policy-focused forums so that largely procedural meetings alternate with brainstorming and analysis of a key issue. Normal school council business will still be dealt with, but time would be put aside for the forum, and a keynote speaker may make a short presentation.

By alternating procedural and policy-focused meetings, a council is less likely to be a burdensome monthly meeting 'treadmill' for management and council members are less likely to become bogged down in operational issues that are not strategic.

Competent chairing of meetings

A key role of the school council president to ensure that each meeting is efficient and effective and helps to cultivate a real sense of community. The president should:

• Draw up the draft agenda with the principal, at least five working days before the meeting, taking into account other members' suggestions and issues arising from the previous meeting (some councils have an agenda committee for this purpose)
• Stay on time with the agenda and keep the meeting moving along and focus discussion on the topic at hand
• Stick to standing orders and uphold ground rules for meetings
• Support a culture of teamwork, mutual respect and frank and open discussion, strongly encouraging everyone to have a say
• Avoid expressing bias (always using a neutral tone of voice and displaying collaborative body language)
• Ensure that decisions are properly understood and well recorded. If necessary, the president will repeat the decision for the minute taker and ensure that all members agree with the wording. As well, he or she will ensure that differing viewpoints are accurately recorded in the minutes
• Clear the minutes within one week of the meeting.

A president may also ensure that there is external professional assessment of the council's performance at least once every two years as well as ensure that there are other interim evaluations.

Sub-committees

Sub-committees are the backbone of an effective governing board. Sub-committees have clear purposes and terms of reference and procedures for agendas, minutes and reporting to the council. They make recommendations for the full school council to consider. The membership, purposes and terms of reference of sub-committees are decided by council.

The terms of reference should directly relate to key council functions and powers, including school policy issues and current policy development, so when matters arising at a meeting need further work, council has a structure and process in place to refer them for further investigation and recommendation.

School community members with a particular interest or expertise in the business of a sub-committee may be invited to join. It is important to have a proper structure for such reports. The Department has a useful sub-committee reports template to assist you.

Schools find that 'less is more' - it's obviously better to have a small number of well-functioning teams than lots of committees, some of which may be 'going through the motions'.

Sub-committees should determine their meeting frequency. They do not necessarily need to meet monthly. Some sub-committees may only meet 3-4 times a year, if focused on policy development and planning for the future, while others may need to meet quite frequently during busy periods.

The principal, staff and school council may from time to time review the numbers and types of school committees and identify:

• Problems such as an unclear purpose or a lack of strategic focus
• Duplication, i.e., a school may have school council and staff committees that operate separately and yet cover similar issues (e.g., an education committee and a curriculum committee)
• Opportunities for building teacher-parent-student synergy in real teams.
  

Such teams are not just focused on internal school matters but may address broader issues that are of importance both to the school and to groups (e.g., a sporting club) within the community.

Examples of school council sub-committees that may be high-level, whole school community teams that are sharply focused on policy development include:

• Education or teaching and learning
• Information and communication technology
• Health and well-being or health promotion
• Performing arts or sport and recreation
• Student leadership and participation
• A K-12 or 0-18 partnerships team
• Eco-learning/education for sustainability
• A facilities for new learning team.

Some schools have rebuilt their leadership structure around a small number of policy-focused sub-committees, providing a sharp (and shared staff and school community) focus on improvement.

8. Partnerships, participation and inclusion

Strong teams, sub-committees and partnerships promote mutual learning and joint work among all stakeholders within and external to the school. Joint governance arrangements will also become more common as governments and school communities seek to address increasingly complex issues outside the control or influence of any one school.

With joint governance arrangements, it is important to work out the:

• Desired shared vision, goals, outcomes and timeframes
• Roles and responsibilities, including capacities to contribute
• Specifications of the projects, services and strategies
• Resources to be applied by the parties and budgetary issues
• What matters will be pursued in partnership beyond the school community, with which bodies, and when the school council would need to seek Ministerial approval to undertake such arrangements.

Partnerships that school councils consider as key policy and planning areas for discussing and progressing include:

• Strengthening family-school relationships
• A P-12 cluster of primary and secondary schools
• Links within a regional network
• Links with workplaces and sporting clubs
• A school as a community hub.

Some schools develop a family-school-community partnerships policy which becomes a core influence on all decisions, actions and practice. Students can be co-opted as community members by school council. They have two-year terms of office like other members and have full voting rights. It is recommended that councils with provision for community members have students as members. A commitment to student membership of the council may be part of a school council's student participation policy and strategy.

Cultural and social inclusion

The best councils are those that are inclusive, comprising people from all walks of life and representing a wide variety of views and skills. Good councils reach out to people who may be co-opted as community members but also make sure that they remain strongly representative of their own local stakeholders. Key questions are:

• Does the school council membership profile reflect the school's demographics?
• Are the voices of different members of the school community (including students) really heard in decision-making?
• If not, what can be done to increase the inclusion and representation of under-represented groups?
• What other practical strategies will the council adopt to ensure that their views are sought and taken into account?

To focus on inclusion, both to bring about better, more participatory governance and to continue to improve the educational experience of all students, school councils develop a diversity strategy or a cultural and social inclusion policy and plan.

One way to build inclusion is to make sure that council meetings are open to the school community. Community members should be encouraged to attend these by publicising the meetings and agenda items as well as including reports of previous meetings in the school newsletter and/or on the school's website.

9. Communication and information sharing

A school council should make sure that:

• The school has a policy and plan for content-rich, two-way communication between the school and families
• Stakeholders have ready access to meeting reports, school policies and the school's strategic plan
• There is high-quality, two-way communication between the school council and stakeholders.

Open and transparent reporting and communication, together with a high level of school community awareness of the work of a school council and its decisions, are integral to good governance. The good practice of some schools is to include council meeting agendas, reports and minutes in the school's newsletter and on its website as well as the dates of upcoming meetings.

There may also be contact details for council members (with their agreement) as well as links to previously agreed policies.

This good practice can be assisted by a policy and plan for better school communications. The aim of this plan may